Spurs news: Jayden Quaintance chooses new jersey number in NBA

Aug. 20, 2026, 3:18 p.m. ET

Wearing No. 21 for much of his career, Jayden Quaintance will have a new number when he takes the court for his rookie campaign with the San Antonio Spurs.

Quaintance, born in Cleveland, wore No. 21 in high school at Hillcrest Prep and Dream City Christian in Arizona and Word of God in North Carolina. He also donned it across his two years in college at Arizona State and briefly at Kentucky.

The 20th overall pick will be forced to move on from No. 21, though, which is retired for Hall of Famer Tim Duncan, who won five titles over his 19 years with the franchise. The team quickly made sure Quaintance knew that he’d need to choose a new number, so he picked No. 22.

“They cut that off quickly, I’m not going to lie,” Quaintance said on June 25. “As soon as I got drafted, they were like, ‘Here are a couple of number options that you’ll have.’ They killed that dream pretty fast.”

Quaintance was limited to four games last season after dealing with the effects of a torn ACL and meniscus suffered in February 2025 at Arizona State. Before his setback, Quaintance averaged 9.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.6 blocks, 1.5 assists and 1.1 steals with the Sun Devils.

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The 6-foot-10 Quaintance underwent surgery to address the injury on July 15 after stating on draft night that another procedure would be necessary. The team worked with his representation to determine his next steps and will provide an update on his return as appropriate.

Quaintance was highly touted entering the draft because of his rim protection, physicality and upside. The team was ecstatic to add him to the roster and will be working carefully with him to ensure he can return to full health on the court.

Throughout August, Rookie Wire is looking at every first-round pick and why each player selected their respective jersey number as they make the jump to the NBA

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